Have you got an extra heart container?
by Supersilver46
Summary: Harry Potter knew he was different, his ears weren't the only things that seemed 'out of place'. For some reason, he's remembering things and places that he couldn't have possibly have seen or done. And he's suddenly developed an affinity for everything that's green, could his life get any weirder?
1. Chapter 1

Harry knew that he was...different from his relatives. It was a fact that they made sure was very clear to him from the day he had been able to walk and talk. He didn't think they same way they did, he didn't act in the same way they would, and he didn't look the same as them. It made them uneasy, having to raise someone like him, and he guessed that was why they had kept him in the cupboard, with all the cobwebs and dust. He was unnecessary baggage to them, something they only kept because it was necessary, not because it was something they wanted.

The Dursley's made an effort to influence how everyone else in Privet Drive saw him. They spread rumors about his 'deformities' and his 'slacker' behavior. They made sure to let neighbors know about how awful his parents had been. Whenever his Aunt came over for the holiday's, she would make sure to shower Dudley in praise, and insult Harry's parents at the first chance she would get. When he was younger, he had gotten upset about how unfair his situation was, but as he grew older, he learned to just block it out.

Dudley had also made sure to spread rumors about him once they had started going to school together, and he had organized a little group to go 'Harry hunting'. Today, Harry had thought Dudley would be chasing after, so he had hidden in one of his spots behind the school, and eventually Dudley showed up, along with two younger students. It looked like he had decided to skip on his usual Harry Hunt of the day in exchange for bullying the younger students into giving him their money.

"Alright you little punks, give us the money." Dudley smirked as he cracked his knuckles, "Otherwise we'll beat you up and take it from you anyway."

"H-hey you don't have to be so mean," One of the students said as they reached into their pocket, "Here we'll give you the money, so just-"

"Are you serious Colin?!" The other student said, "You're just going to fold and hand your money over?!"

"W-well we don't really have a choice Talo," The student, whose name was Colin apparently, said, "He's going to hurt us if we-"

"SO?!" Talo shouted, "Look Colin, if we let this pig win, he'll never leave us alone!"

"What did you call me?!" Dudley shouted, his face turning a bright shade of red.

"T-talo, I think you should take back what you said-"

"You heard me pig!" Talo shouted as he brushed past Colin, "Lose some weight, how do you expect anyone to take you seriously with a gut that large?!"

Dudley smiled, but his eyes were filled with rage.

"Well then, I suppose I should show you why people take me seriously." Dudley said before he slammed his fist into Talo's gut, sending the boy crashing to the ground.

"T-talo!" Colin tried to get to his friend, but Piers held him back.

"You know if you had just given me your money, this wouldn't have happened," Dudley said as he picked the wheezing Talo off the ground. He propped the boy against the wall of the school. "Oh, well I guess a beating will teach you a lesson you won't forget."

Dudley cocked his fist back and-

"Stop!" Harry shouted as he ran out from his hiding spot. As soon as the words left his mouth, all eyes focused on him.

"Oh look, it's the long-eared freak," Dudley sneered, "So that's where you were hiding, are you going to stand up for these little punks?"

"Of course I am!" Harry shouted, "I'm not about to let you hurt them because you want money!"

"Heh, you know maybe we should've gone Harry hunting after all guys," Dudley said to his group, before he turned to Harry, "Oh well, I guess we'll beat the freak up first, then we'll get those little punks."

"Yeah!" Dudley's group shouted.

"Well what are you waiting for? Go get him!"

"Yeah, let's beat the freak up!" Piers shouted as he led the charge, holding a large stick in his hand Harry sighed, he'd wanted Dudley to attack him first, but if this was how he wanted things to go... Harry took the practice sword he had put in his sports bag.

 _First, I will teach you the Horizontal strike, and then I will teach you about the vertical slice! Hold your sword out like so..._

Piers was the first to reach Harry, and the boy prepared to strike Harry. Harry waited until the perfect moment and swung his wooden sword to parry Piers's stick, causing the boy to stumble backwards.

 _Next, I will teach you how to follow up a parry with an attack!_

Harry thrust his wooden sword forward, jabbing Piers in the stomach. The boy collapsed to the ground as the other boys continued to charge at Harry. Harry held his sword behind him and waited for the perfect moment to strike.

 _And finally I will teach you the spin attack, this is a technique passed down from the most royal of knights...now build your strength up..._

Time seemed to slow down for Harry as he blotted out everything that wasn't necessary for this technique, the one thing that mattered was building up energy and focusing on his enemies. Harry furrowed his brow as his energy reached a tipping point...

 _And release!_

Harry let out a shout as he spun around like a whirlwind, his wooden sword struck all ten of the other boys who had tried to attack him. They flew backwards and collapsed on the ground in a heap, moaning and clutching the areas of their bodies that had been struck by Harry's sword.

"Well Dudley?" Harry asked as he pointed his sword at his cousin, "Care to try your luck?"

"Y-you, h-how did you..." Dudley took a step back in fright, "Y-you must have done some freakish to yourself, I-I'm telling mom and dad!"

Dudley turned around and ran away in fright. Harry sighed and put his sword back in his bag, "Guess all that training paid off Master Orca..." Harry muttered under his breath. He then walked over to Colin and Talon who had watched the whole fight unfold.

"Hey, are you two alright?" Harry asked.

"Y-yeah..." Colin said, "Thank you for sticking up for us!"

"You don't have to thank me," Harry said, "I just did what anybody else would have done."

"Sure, but you just charged in and beat em' all up like it was nothing!" Talon said, "You were so cool!"

"What's your name?" Colin asked Harry.

"My name? Well depending on who you ask, either Harry or freak," Harry said, "But I prefer to go by Link."


	2. Chapter 2

"How dare you attack Dudley and his friends on the last day of school!" Harry's Uncle Vernon shouted at Harry as soon as he walked into the house. Vernon's face was red as he glared at Harry, and Dudley was standing behind Harry's Aunt Petunia. "Just look at what you've done to Dudley, he can't stop crying!"

Dudley hid his face in his palms as he let out a loud sob. Aunt Petunia rubbed Dudley's back as she tried to comfort him. She glared at Harry as Dudley continued to cry, "I never knew you were so violent boy," she said, "What did Dudley do to you to deserve being attacked?"

"Well he-"

"I won't listen to any of you excuses!" Vernon shouted, "You apologize to Dudley right now, and then you'll go straight to your cupboard!"

Harry saw Dudley take his hands away from his face, which was surprisingly dry for someone who had spent the past few minutes 'crying'. Dudley smirked at Harry, before he covered his face and continued to fake cry.

"Hey!" Vernon shouted, which made Harry look away from Dudley and focus back on his Uncle, "You heard what I said, apologize to Dudley! Now!"

"Fine," Harry said, and he turned to Dudley, "Dudley, I'm sorry that your parents are too stupid to realize how much of a bully you are."

Vernon clenched his fist as he started to tremble in anger, Dudley looked surprised to see that Harry had the guts to insult him and his parents in one fell swoop, and Petunia's face was scrunched up in anger.

"What? I did what you said," Harry said to his uncle, "I apologized to Dudley."

"GET IN THE CUPBOARD!" Vernon shouted before he grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him to the door that led to the cupboard under the stairs. He opened the door and threw Harry into the cupboard before shutting the door and locking it tight.

"You think you're clever, well then you can stay in there all night!" Vernon shouted as he stomped away, leaving Harry alone in the dark cupboard. Harry sighed and put his things down before he laid down on his 'bed'. He should've just done what his Uncle had told him to do, but he wasn't going to apologize to someone like Dudley, even if it would get him out of trouble.

"Well, guess I'm sleeping early then..." Harry said before he shut his eyes and fell asleep...

" _Link...help me..." A voice spoke as Harry slept, "I'm being held prisoner in the castle..."_

 _Harry jolted awake and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He blinked as he suddenly found himself in an actual bed, and the familiar surroundings of the cupboard he spent most of his time in had been replaced by a home-like setting._

" _W-what the...where am I?" Harry asked himself._

" _Help me...my name is - please, Link you are the only one who can save Hyrule!"_

" _Who are you?" Harry asked, "And how am I supposed to rescue you in the first place?"_

 _The voice didn't speak, which caused Harry to worry. Suddenly, the lights in the house turned on, and a familiar voice caught his attention._

" _Link, I'll be going out to the castle," Uncle Vernon said, he was dressed in green and carried a large shield in one hand and a sword in the other "You stay here, I'll be back before you know it."_

 _Uncle Vernon left the house and closed the door behind him. Harry got out of bed and pulled on his clothes before he followed his uncle outside. The rain came down hard as ominous lighting streaked through the sky, and thunder boomed soon after. Making sure to hide in the tall grass, Harry eventually reached the castle and watched as his Uncle entered through the castle's entrance. Harry tried to follow him but-_

" _Halt!" a knight dressed in silver armor shouted, as he pointed his sword at Harry, "What do you think you're doing?"_

" _S-sorry, I was just trying to find my uncle," Harry said as he tried to come up with a lie, "He said he was going to the castle, but he never came back."_

" _Ah, so there are two rats scurrying around," The solider said, "Don't worry little boy, you'll soon join your Uncle!"_

" _Be wary of the castle's soldiers! Agahnim controls them with his magic!" The voice that had spoken to Harry earlier shouted as the solider swung his sword, aiming to take off Harry's head. Harry ducked, and the blade whizzed over his head. Harry scrambled to his feet and ran from the solider._

" _Intruder!" The solider shouted, drawing the attention of the others on guard, "Kill him, Lord Agahnim will not tolerate rats ruining his plans!"_

" _There's a secret entrance that you can find near the right side of the castle!" The voice shouted as Harry ran, "It's underneath a bush, you'll know which one it is when you see it!"_

 _Eventually, he managed to find the bush, and he quickly pulled it aside to find a hole in the ground. He barely had any time to think as he leapt into the hole, falling into the water below. Harry swam to the surface and coughed out the water that had gotten into his lung. He got out of the water to find his uncle slumped against the wall._

" _U-uncle!" Harry shouted as he ran up to the man who blearily opened his eyes at the sound of his nephew's voice._

" _L-link what are you doing here?" Vernon asked, before he began to cough, "Nevermind that, here take my sword and shield, the princess needs your help. Remember - is...your..."_

 _Vernon's eyes closed, and his head slumped to the side as he died._

" _Find the knight!" Harry heard someone shout, "Kill him, and if you find his brat, kill him too!"_

 _Suddenly a knight holding a lamp appeared, the knight smirked as he saw Harry._

" _Well, that didn't take too long," The knight said, "Stand still, I'll make this quick!"_

 _The knight rushed at Harry with his sword drawn, and in a few seconds he was right in front of Harry. The knight swung his sword down in a arc, Harry took his uncle's shield and blocked the strike. The metallic clang of the sword hitting his shield reverbed through the room, and the knight stumbled backwards, dropping his lantern. Harry thrust his sword forward, but the knight parried his strike and hit Harry in the stomach with the hilt of his sword. Harry nearly let go of his sword as he was winded by the blow. The knight pressed forward with a flurry of jabs that Harry struggled to block with his shield as he was slowly pushed back._

 _Harry glanced at the ground and saw the lantern that the solider had dropped. The oil in the lantern hadn't completely spilled on the ground, so Harry picked it up and tossed the oil that remained into the knight's face. The knight reeled back in pain, and Harry stabbed his sword into the knight's chest, killing him. The knight fell to the ground, before he exploded in a plume of smoke. Harry picked up the lantern and then-_

"Get up! It's time to make us breakfast!" Vernon shouted, jolting Harry awake. As Vernon stomped away, Harry sighed and climbed out of his bed.

"I guess that was just a dream-" Harry paused as he looked down at his hands. Clutched in his left hand was the sword, and in the right was the shield he had seen in his dream...


	3. Chapter 3

After finding the sword and shield in the cupboard, Harry made sure not to let either item out of his sight. He had decided to use the money he had saved up to by a sheathe for his sword, much to the dismay of the Dursley's. When they had seen that Harry had an actual sword with him, they thought that he had stolen it, and his Uncle had tried to confiscate the weapon. However, each night the sword would always find its way back to Harry, which worried them even more.

" _What if the freak tries to gut us all with that thing?"_ Harry had heard his uncle ask, _"We should get rid of it!"_

" _How do we get rid of it though Vernon?"_ Harry's aunt had asked, _"Whenever we try to take the thing away from him, he gets it back the next day!"_

" _He's probably done something to the blade,"_ Harry's uncle had said, " _It's got to do with 'you-know-what'."_

To this day, Harry still didn't know what they meant by 'you-know-what.' If he tried to bring it up, he'd undoubtedly get thrown right back into the cupboard for a week, after all the first rule of the Dursley family was to never ask any questions.

Anyway, today he was in the kitchen cooking for the Dursley's. Today was Dudley's birthday, which meant that Harry would have to do all the cooking and cleaning while the Dursley's celebrated. As Harry turned over the bacon he was frying in the kitchen, his Uncle walked in and sat at the table.

"Comb your hair!" he barked, by way of a morning greeting while he pulled out his newspaper, "It's getting too long!"

Harry sighed, it seemed that ever since he had beaten Dudley's friends up, his uncle had decided to try and find new ways to criticize him. Personally, Harry liked the way his hair was growing, for some reason the way he had started to style his hair made feel...nostalgic.

Dudley and his Aunt entered the kitchen right when Harry had finished frying eggs. Harry placed the food on the cramped table as Dudley whined about not having enough presents.

"Thirty-six," Dudley said, looking up at his mother and father. "That's two less than last year."

Sensing the tantrum that Dudley was about to throw, Harry quickly ate his food and left the kitchen...

…

Harry sighed as he looked out the window of his Uncle's new car. He was squeezed between Dudley and Piers in the backseat as his Uncle drove them to the zoo. His uncle was complaining about motorcycles as he drove, and Harry found himself agreeing with his Uncle. A motorcycle couldn't compare to rushing through fields on horseback.

"That's stupid," Dudley said, "Motorcycles are cooler than horses."

Harry blinked, had he said that out loud?

"Besides you've never ridden a horse before," Harry's uncle said, as he kept his eyes on the road, "Don't try to act like you know everything."

Eventually, they finally reached the zoo. When they walked through the entrance, the Dursley's bought Dudley and Piers chocolate ice cream while buying Harry a small lemon ice pop. The morning at the zoo had been one of the best ones Harry had ever had, and around lunchtime the Dursley's had stopped at one of the restaurants at the zoo.

"Hello there." A familiar voice said. Harry looked up to see a man with pale skin and a large pointed nose. His red hair was tied into dreadlocks, and he wore a purple robe that had an inverted triangle cut into three. He held a long golden scepter in his hands, and while he was smiling at them, something about the man set Harry on edge.

"How are you all doing?" The man said, "My name is Yuga, and I'll be taking care of you today, are you ready to order?"

"Thank you, Yuga," Harry's aunt said while Dudley and Piers snickered to themselves, "Boys are you ready to order your food?"

Dudley and Piers fought to control their laughter as they told Yuga what they wanted, Vernon and Petunia also told Yuga what they wanted, and when Yuga turned to look at Harry, he paused for a brief moment, before taking Harry's order.

"Ma'am I must say that you have lovely children," Yuga said to Petunia, "You must have worked very hard to make them so handsome."

"Why thank you," Petunia said, "But how did you notice their handsomeness?"

"As an artist and a waitress, it's my job to find the inherent beauty in all things."

Harry thought Yuga must be a terrible artist if he thought Dudley and Piers were 'handsome'

"Of course, only a mother as lovely as you could produce such fine children," Yuga continued, "You should be proud of yourself."

"O-oh, why thank you." Petunia muttered as she blushed, Harry heard something snap and he turned to see that Vernon had crushed one of the forks that was on the table.

"I was wondering if you could help me with a project I'm working on," Yuga said, "I've been trying to paint something very beautiful, and I think that you could serve as the perfect material for my latest masterpiece."

"I-"

"No," Vernon growled as he stood up, "Everyone we're leaving, _now_."

"But I haven't even eaten anything!" Dudley complained. Vernon cuffed Dudley on the back of the head before dragging him out of his chair. Piers and Dudley followed, and Petunia turned to leave with them before Yuga called out to her.

"Here's my card," Yuga said, "It has my address and number, give me a ring in case you want to meet me."

"O-okay." Petunia said as she put the card in her bag.

…

"Who does that freak think he is?!" Vernon fumed as he raced down the highway, "that bastard was trying to flirt with _my_ wife!"

"Vernon, I don't think he-"

"Quiet! I saw the way you were looking at that freak!" Vernon shouted, "That's the last time we ever go to the zoo!"

"Dad, I'm hungry!" Dudley whined.

"You'll eat once we're back home!"

After that day at the zoo, Vernon temper had risen. He complained about anything Harry or Petunia did. This treatment also applied to Dudley, who had no idea how to handle getting punished by his father. Today, Vernon was in usual moods when the mail slot opened. Vernon forced Harry to go get the mail, and as Harry shifted through the letters, he found one addressed to him.

"What's taking you so long boy?!" Vernon shouted. Harry shoved the letter into his pocket and handed the rest of the mail to his Uncle. Harry then rushed to his cupboard and opened the letter with trembling hands.

 _Dear Mr. Potter, we are pleased to inform you that you are a wizard..._


	4. Chapter 4

' _I'm...a wizard?'_ Harry thought to himself as he read the letter, _'That actually explains a lot of things...'_

The letter included a list of all the supplies he would need to start school at Hogwarts, which he could buy at a place called 'Diagon Alley.' As he read the letter, the door to the cupboard opened and Dudley walked into the cupboard.

"What are you doing?" Dudley asked.

"Nothing," Harry said as he slipped his letter under his pillow, "Why are you in here?"

"Mom and Dad are fighting about that artist freak," Dudley said, "I tried playing my games, but I got bored of them, so I came here."

"Well, there's nothing fun for you to do here either," Harry said, "So could you please leave?"

Dudley ignored Harry and walked close to Harry's bed.

"What are you hiding?" Dudley asked.

"Nothing." Harry said, "So could-"

It happened so fast that Harry hardly had time to react. Dudley dove for Harry's bed and flung Harry's pillow to the floor. He grabbed the letter that Harry had tried to hide and smirked.

"What's this?" Dudley asked, "Who'd send a letter to someone as lame as you?"

"Give it back Dudley!" Harry shouted as he lunged for the letter. Dudley dodged out of the way of Harry's lunge, and raced into the kitchen where Vernon and Petunia were arguing. Harry raced after Dudley and tried to get the letter back.

"Dad, look at this!" Dudley shouted, "Someone sent Harry a letter!"

"What?!" Vernon shouted as he snatched the letter out of Dudley's hand. His face went pale as he saw what was written on the letter.

"What is it Vernon?" Petunia asked as she took the letter from Vernon, as soon as she read over the contents, she also became pale.

"I want you two to get out of the kitchen." Vernon said to Harry and Dudley, " _now."_

Both Harry and Dudley began to protest, but Vernon grabbed them by the back of their necks and threw them into the hallway...

…

After that, the normal everyday lives of the Dursleys changed. Vernon moved Harry from the cupboard to Dudley's old bedroom in an attempt to be 'nice' to Harry. The letters addressed continued to show up in random places after Vernon nailed the mail slot shut, which had resulted in the letters being forced down the chimney, into eggs, and other things. Vernon had gone slightly insane and had dragged them from place to place in an attempt to get away from the people that were supposedly following them.

Which led to Vernon buying a boat and rowing them all the way to a broken-down house that smelled like seaweed. And as Harry watched the minutes on Dudley's watch tick down to Harry's birthday, a loud booming sound came from outside the house. Dudley jerked awake as Vernon raced upstairs, he came back down with a rifle in his hands.

"Who's there?" he shouted. "I warn you — I'm armed!"

There was a pause. Then —

SMASH!

The door was hit with such force that it swung clean off its hinges and with a deafening crash landed flat on the floor. A giant of a man was standing in the doorway. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and a wild, tangled beard, but you could make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all the hair. The giant squeezed his way into the hut, stooping so that his head just brushed the ceiling. He bent down, picked up the door, and fitted it easily back into its frame. The noise of the storm outside dropped a little. He turned to look at them all.

"Couldn't make us a cup o' tea, could yeh? It's not been an easy journey. ..."

He strode over to the sofa where Dudley sat frozen with fear.

"Budge up, yeh great lump," said the stranger.

Dudley squeaked and ran to hide behind his mother, who was crouching, terrified, behind Uncle Vernon.

"An' here's Harry!" said the giant.

Harry looked up into the fierce, wild, shadowy face and sa eyes were crinkled in a smile.

"Las' time I saw you, you was only a baby," said the giant. "Yeh look a lot like yer dad, but yeh've got yer mom's eyes."

Uncle Vernon made a funny rasping noise.

"Anyway — Harry," said the giant, turning his back on the Dursleys, "a very happy birthday to yeh. Got summat fer yeh here — I mighta sat on it at some point, but it'll taste all right."

From an inside pocket of his black overcoat he pulled a slightly squashed box. Harry opened it with trembling fingers. Inside was a large, sticky chocolate cake with Happy Birthday Harry written on it in green icing. Harry looked up at the giant. He meant to say thank you, but the words got lost on the way to his mouth, and what he said instead was, "Who are you?"

The giant chuckled.

"True, I haven't introduced meself. Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Groundskeeper at Hogwarts!"

…

After that introduction, Hagrid told Harry the truth about his parents. Contrary to what the Dursley's had told him, his parents hadn't died in a car crash. Instead they had been murdered by a dark wizard named Voldemort, and somehow Voldemort had been killed by Harry when he was only a baby. At some point, Hagrid had given Dudley a pig's tail, and the two of them had left the Dursley's behind. They'd stopped at a place called the Leaky Cauldron, and most of the witches and wizards practically tripped over themselves to talk to him.

But there was one man at the cauldron that made Harry's skin crawl. He was a pale young man, one of his eyes constantly twitched as he made his way to Harry.

"Professor Quirrell!" said Hagrid. "Harry, Professor Quirrell will be one of your teachers at Hogwarts."

"P-P-Potter," stammered Professor Quirrell, grasping Harry's hand, "c-can't t- tell you how p-pleased I am to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too Professor." Harry said as he warily shook the professor's hand.

"I-I must s-say that's a u-unique shield you h-have with you." Professor Quirrell said, "W-where did you find it?"

"I just stumbled on it one day," Harry said, "It looked nice, so I took it home."

"A-ah I see, y-you know there's a legend about that shield," Professor Quirrell said, "I-I'd be more than happy to tell you about it."

"Actually Professor, we're running a bit late," Hagrid said, "Come on Harry."

Harry followed Hagrid out of the Leaky Cauldron as Professor Quirrell continued to stare at the shield Harry had...


	5. Chapter 5

_He'd been approaching the castle town gates, when the wind had suddenly begun to pick up._

" _It looks like a storm is coming," a blue ball of light said as it hovered next to him, "We should hurry and tell the princess that we have the stones."_

 _He nodded and quickened his pace. Droplets of rain pelted him from above as the clouds darkened, thunder boomed overhead as he reached the gates. The drawbridge to the castle town began to lower, but for some reason he felt uneasy as he watched the bridge get lower. There was a sense of déjà vu that he couldn't shake, and while he could attribute that to the fact that he had seen the drawbridge lowered countless times during his trips to and from the castle, this time something felt off._

 _Suddenly, he heard the thunderous roar of hoofbeats, and a white horse galloped over the bridge. He got a good look at the horse's rider, she was a tall woman who had silver hair and she wore purple armor. A young girl had her arms clutched around her back as they fled from the castle. The girl turned around and she stared at him for a few seconds before throwing something into the castle town moat._

" _Argh, I lost her!"_

 _He turned around to see a dark horse and its rider were staring into the distance, searching for the woman who had fled from the town. The rider on the dark horse scowled and turned his attention to Harry._

" _You, over there! Little kid! You must have seen the white horse gallop past just now... Which way did it go?! Answer me!" The man shouted._

 _Harry didn't say anything as he drew his sword. He knew that he shouldn't tell this man anything, he could tell that he was evil._

 _The man smirked at the sight of Harry's stance._

" _Heh heh heh... You want a piece of me?! Very funny! I like your attitude!" The man raised his left hand, and a ball of dark energy formed in front of him. He launched the sphere at Harry, the ball of dark energy lifted Harry off his feet and sent him crashing to the ground._

" _Pathetic little fool! Do you realize who you are dealing with?! I am Ganondorf! And soon, I will rule the world!"_

 _._

 _._

 _._

"...Wake up!"

Harry jerked awake as Uncle Vernon banged on the door to his room.

"Hurry up and get ready, you're the one who wants to go to that school for freaks!" Uncle Vernon shouted before he stormed down the stairs.

...That's right he'd almost forgotten that he was supposed to be going to Hogwarts today.

"Well, are you ready Hedwig?" Harry asked the owl he had bought when he was with Hagrid. Hedwig chirped, which Harry took as a 'yes'. Harry changed into his usual clothes, he had decided that he would dress into his robes onto the train, and he and the Dursley's loaded everything he needed into their car.

They reached King's Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumped Harry's trunk onto a cart and wheeled it into the station for him. Harry thought this was strangely kind until Uncle Vernon stopped dead, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face.

"Well, there you are, boy. Platform nine — platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don't seem to have built yet, have they?" He said before he walked away, leaving Harry alone. "Have a good term."

Harry then spent the next few minutes looking for the platform, but he didn't have any luck. He had tried to ask for help, but the guards looked at him as though he was an idiot when he asked for the train that left at 11 am. He was starting to panic, when he caught sight of a family of red-heads that had trunks that looked like Harry's.

"Excuse me," Harry said to the plump woman.

"Hello, dear," she said. "First time at Hogwarts? Ron's new, too."

She pointed at the last and youngest of her sons. He was tall, thin, and gangling, with freckles, big hands and feet, and

"Yes," said Harry. "The thing is — the thing is, I don't know how to —"

"How to get onto the platform?" she said kindly, and Harry nodded.

"Not to worry," she said. "All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier

between platforms nine and ten. Don't stop and don't be scared you'll crash into

it, that's very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Go on, go now before Ron."

"Er — okay," said Harry.

He pushed his trolley around and stared at the barrier. It looked very solid.

He started to walk toward it. People jostled him on their way to platforms nine and ten. Harry walked more quickly. He was going to smash right into that barrier and then he'd be in trouble — leaning forward on his cart, he broke into a heavy run — the barrier was coming nearer and nearer — he wouldn't be able to stop — the cart was out of control — he was a foot away — he closed his eyes ready for the crash —

It didn't come ... he kept on running ... he opened his eyes.

A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts Express, eleven o'clock. Harry looked behind him and saw a wrought-iron archway where the barrier had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three-Quarters on it...

.

.

.

He'd ended up getting along with Ron, he seemed like a nice guy. The two of them were sitting in the compartment, eating the candy that Harry had bought when the door slid open. A boy walked into the compartment with tears in his eyes.

"Sorry," the boy said, "but have you seen a toad at all?"

When they shook their heads, he wailed, "I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!"

"He'll turn up," said Harry.

"Yes," said the boy miserably. "Well, if you see him ..."

He left.

"Don't know why he's so bothered," said Ron. "If I'd brought a toad I'd lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk."

The door slid open, the toadless boy was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her new Hogwarts robes.

"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth.

"We've already told him we haven't seen it," said Ron, but the girl wasn't listening, she was staring at Harry. "Er, are you listening?"

"It's you..." The girl muttered as she stared at Harry. "You're..."

"Are you okay?" Harry asked, "You're looking rather pale..."

"Let's go Neville," the girl said as she grabbed the toadless boy's hand and dragged him out of the compartment.

"But Hermione I thought you wanted to-" Neville's words were cut off as the girl closed the door.

"Well, she left in a hurry," Ron said, "I wonder why?"


	6. Chapter 6

Ron looked relieved as he realized that they didn't need to kill a troll to be sorted. He'd been nervous once they had gotten onto the boats that would take them to Hogwarts, and part of that had rubbed off on Harry. Luckily though, all you needed to be sorted was to put on a hat that would tell you which house you would be in.

"Potter, Harry!"

As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.

" _Potter, did she say?"_

" _The Harry Potter?"_

The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, oh my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting. ... So where shall I put you?"

Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, _Not Slytherin, not Slytherin._

"Not Slytherin, eh?" said the small voice. "Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that — no? Well, if you're sure — better be GRYFFINDOR!"

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"Who's that talking to Professor Quirrell?" Harry asked Percy as he looked at the dark-haired professor who seemed to be glaring at him.

"Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous, that's Professor Snape. He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to — everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape."

Harry watched Snape for a while, but Snape didn't look at him again.

At last, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.

"Ahem — just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you."

"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."

Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors."

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their House teams should contact Madam Hooch.

"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right- hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

Harry laughed, but he was one of the few who did.

"He's not serious?" he muttered to Percy.

"Must be," said Percy, frowning at Dumbledore. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere — the forest's full of dangerous beasts, everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."

"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried

Dumbledore. Harry noticed that the other teachers' smiles had become rather fixed. Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick, as if he was trying to get a fly off the end, and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.

"Everyone pick their favorite tune," Dumbledore said, "And off we go!"

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Harry found that he really enjoyed most of his classes, Professor Flitwick was rather laidback, and Professor McGonagall seemed to be rather strict. But the subjects they taught seemed to be really interesting. Professor Quirrell couldn't hold class without stuttering, and Professor Binns put Harry to sleep. If there was one class he didn't like, it was potions, it seemed like the Professor had it out for him, especially after he caught wind that Harry was let onto the Qudditch team for Gryffindor.

"Hey Harry," Ron greeted him when he sat next to Harry in the common room, "So are you up for another round of chess?"

"Shouldn't you two be studying?" Hermione asked as she walked into the common room, "Your grades aren't exactly stellar, you should take this a bit more seriously."

"Hey there's nothing wrong with relaxing a little bit," Ron said, "We'll study later."

Hermione seemed like she wanted to say something, but she huffed and left the common room.

"Seriously, what's her problem?" Ron asked as he looked at the retreating figure of Hermione, "She's been really uptight since we ran into that dog."

"I don't know Ron," Harry said, "I can't even begin to understand her."

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Later that morning, Professor Flitwick announced in Charms that he thought they were ready to start making objects fly, something they had all been dying to try since they'd seen him make Neville's toad zoom around the classroom. Professor Flitwick put the class into pairs to practice.

Harry's partner was Seamus Finnigan (which was a relief, because Neville had been trying to catch his eye). Ron, however, was to be working with Hermione Granger. It was hard to tell whether Ron or Hermione was angrier about this.

"Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" squeaked Professor Flitwick, perched on top of his pile of books as usual.

"Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too — never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

It was very difficult. Harry and Seamus swished and flicked, but the feather they were supposed to be sending skyward just lay on the desktop. Seamus got so impatient that he prodded it with his wand and set fire to it — Harry had to put it out with his hat.

Ron, at the next table, wasn't having much more luck.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" he shouted, waving his long arms like a windmill.

"You're saying it wrong," Harry heard Hermione snap. "It's Wing-gar-dium

Levi-o-sa, make the 'gar' nice and long."

"You do it, then, if you're so clever," Ron snarled.

Hermione rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand, and said,

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

Their feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads.

"Oh, well done!" cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. "Everyone see here, Miss Granger's done it!"

Ron was in a very bad mood by the end of the class.

"It's no wonder no one can stand her," he said to Harry as they pushed their way into the crowded corridor, "she's a nightmare, honestly."

Someone knocked into Harry as they hurried past him. It was Hermione. Harry caught a glimpse of her face — and was startled to see that she was in tears.

"I think she heard you."

"So?" said Ron, but he looked a bit uncomfortable. "She must've noticed she's got no friends."

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The two of them raced into the bathroom as Hermione slumped to the ground. A large troll with a giant lump sticking out of its neck lumbered over to her.

"Hey!" Harry shouted as he drew his sword, "Why don't you pick on someone your own size!"

The troll looked from Hermione to Harry, and then back to Hermione. It seemed to be thinking quite a bit, before it turned to face Harry. Evidently, it had decided that the puny wizard holding the sword was more threatening than the girl huddled in the corner.

"Ron," Harry said to his trembling friend, "This fight's going to get a bit dangerous, grab Hermione and get out of here."

"W-what?! I can't just leave you in here!" Ron shouted, "You'll be killed!"

"Don't worry Ron," Harry said as he smirked, "This isn't the first time I've taken on a monster."

"Wait, what do you mean by that?"

"Just get Hermione Ron!"

Harry shouted as he charged at the troll. The troll looked confused at seeing the young wizard charge at it, but it decided that if the wizard was going to give it an easy kill then it may as well take the opportunity. It swung its club in a downward arc, hoping to crush Harry. Harry rolled out of the way as the club smashed into the ground, chunks of rubble flew into the air as the ground cracked under the strength of the troll's strike, leaving a small crater. The troll struggled to pull the club out of the ground as Ron rushed over to Hermione's side. He scooped the girl up in his arms and ran out of the bathroom as the troll finally freed the club from the ground.

 _I doubt I'll do much damage if I hit the troll from down here..._ Harry thought to himself, _I told Ron I could handle this, but I don't have any idea on how I'm going to kill the troll._

The troll lumbered towards Harry, but it suddenly stopped moving and howled in pain.

 _What the..._

That was when Harry noticed it, the large lump on the troll's neck opened up, revealing a large blue eye that glared at Harry. He could feel dark energy emitting from the eye, and the troll moved against its own free will.

 _So that's it..._ Harry thought to himself, _that eye's the problem, if I take it out then..._

The troll roared and swung its club downwards, Harry dodged out of the way as the club smashed into the ground. Like before, the club was stuck in the ground, and Harry realized that it was his chance. He hopped onto the club and ran up the troll's arm, eventually he reached the troll's neck. Harry rapidly began to strike at the eye, causing it to flash red as it was stricken. The eye closed its eyelids and made the troll fling Harry off its arm, sending him tumbling to the ground. The eye opened once again, and it fired a blue beam that scorched the ground. Harry rolled out of the way, but the eye made the troll turn around so it could hit Harry.

Harry winced as the beam hit his arm, burning his skin. Thinking fast, Harry pulled out his shield, bouncing the beam back at the eye. The troll stumbled to its knees when the eye was hit, and the eye was dazed. Harry dashed at the eye, and tried to stab it, but the eye quickly shut its eyelids. The troll shook its head as it stood back up and growled at Harry. It roared and charged at Harry, who tried to jump to the side, unfortunately the troll caught him by the shoulder and sent Harry skidding to the ground. The troll crash head first into the wall and fell over, dropping its club to the ground.

Suddenly, Harry was struck with an idea. He used the spell they had learned in charms class and levitated the club over the eye. The eye opened and prepared to fire another beam at Harry, Harry dropped the club and it struck the eye, dazing it. Harry rushed towards the eye and stabbed it, plunging his sword as far into its cornea as he could. He yanked the sword out as the eye writhed in pain, before exploding in a plume of purple smoke.

The troll stood back up and looked at Harry, seemingly thanking him as it smashed through the wall of the bathroom and wandered outside the castle. A red heart container floated down from the sky, along with a mysterious green pendant. Harry grabbed the heart container, extending his life, and he shoved the green pendant into his pocket as the professors ran into the bathroom.

"Potter!" Snape shouted, "Where did the troll go?!"

"It's outside," Harry said, "You don't need to worry, I don't think it's going to hurt anyone."

"And how do you know that?" Professor McGonagall asked.

Harry explained what had happened with the troll, and the strange eye that seemed to be possessing it.

"And you...killed the parasite?" Professor Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, it's dead, so I don't think we need to worry about it." Harry said.

"Well Mr. Potter, you seem to be quite the hero," Professor Quirrell said as he made his way into the room, "Killing such a deadly parasite requires a bit of courage, don't you think?"

"Yes," Harry said as he thought about the pendant in his pocket, "It sure does."


	7. Chapter 7

"You know that was very stupid of you," Hermione said as she sat next to Harry and Ron during breakfast.

Ron frowned, "Hey we saved your life, the least you could do is-"

"I'm not talking to you," Hermione said, "Am I?"

"Why yo-"

"It's okay Ron," Harry said as he stared at Hermione, "I get the feeling she wants to talk to me about something, do you mind going to class ahead of me Ron?"

"Uh, sure," Ron said as he looked at Harry in confusion and left the table. Harry waited until he was out of earshot and then turned back to Hermione.

"I never pegged you for the type to cry over something like that Princess," Harry said, "I thought that you weren't easily fazed by petty taunts?"

"Yes well at the end of the day I'm still a child," Hermione said, "And what your friend said really got to me."

"Well if you keep up your ice queen act, he's never going to like you," Harry said, "And you aren't going to make friends with anyone here."

"I'm not worried about what he or anyone else at this school thinks about me," Hermione said, "Making friends isn't important as everything else."

"Really?"

"Yes, really." Hermione frowned, "Speaking of important things, do you still have the pendant?"

"Yeah, it's right here." Harry said as he pulled the pendant out of hammerspace, "I hid it so that Quirrell wouldn't try to steal it."

"Great," Hermione said, "Now we just need to find the other two pendants, find the master sword, and then slay Gannon."

"Technically, wouldn't he be Gannondorf?" Harry asked, "He isn't in his beast form."

"They're both the same person so I don't think it matters." Hermione said as she pulled out a map, "I sensed that the closest pendant is in the 'Forbidden Forest', but its signal is very faint."

"How about that, the one place we've been told not to go is where the next pendant is," Harry said as he got up from the Gryffindor Table, "Alright I'll head over there, grab the pendant and-"

"I'm coming with you."

"What? No, you're not." Harry said, "It's too dangerous for you to go with me, you could get hurt."

Hermione sighed and vanished in a cloud of smoke, causing Harry to cough. As the smoke faded, he saw that standing in Hermione's place was a much younger version of Sheik.

"Did you forget that I spent 7 years as a ninja fighting off Gannon's forces?" Sheik asked.

"Did you forget the fact that Gannondorf captured you as soon as you turned back to normal?" Harry countered, "Did you forget about the time when Cole ripped out your soul, or when Vaati turned you into stone, or when Gannondorf possessed you?"

"This time It's different," Sheik protested, "I know what to expect, and I can help you."

"Besides, if I don't go with you, you'll wander around the forest for days." Sheik said, "Everyone will notice that you're gone, and Gannon will get suspicious."

….He had a good point.

"Fine you can come with me," Harry said, "Just...leave the fighting to me, okay?"

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Vernon Dursley found himself feeling rather empty, but he had no idea as to why he felt that way. The freak was gone, which was a good thing in his book, but something just nagged at him and he couldn't figure out what it was.

"Hey Dad," Dudley said as he closed the front door behind him, "Is Mom out again?"

"Yes," Vernon said, "She's been going out ever since the freak left."

"Maybe she's going to see that Yuga guy?" Dudley said, "She seemed to really like him..."

Dudley's eyes watered as he came to a sudden realization, "Is Mom going to leave us?!"

"NO!"

Dudley backed away in fright, and Vernon couldn't help but shake in rage. He'd finally gotten rid of the freak, Dudley was doing well in school, he got a promotion at his job...so why was Petunia spending all her time with that clownish freak!

"Dudley, I want you to stay here while I'm gone," Vernon said as he grabbed his jacket and his car keys, "Don't do anything stupid."

"Where are you going Dad?"

"I'm going to that freak's studio," Vernon said, "I'm going to stop this...thing from getting any worse."

He stormed out of the house and jumped into his car before he sped off towards the highway. Vernon gained about four tickets on his way to the freak's studio, but he couldn't care less. Eventually he reached the studio and parked near the side of the building. For some strange reason, all the lights were off in the studio, yet Vernon could feel something heavy in the air. A thick aura threatened to choke him as he stumbled over to the Studio's entrance.

"Hey freak!" Vernon shouted as he pounded on the door, "I want my wife to come with me, she's never going to come here again!"

Vernon stumbled as the door suddenly opened, sending him crashing to the ground. The door slammed shut behind him, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't open the door.

"Hey what the hell is this?!" Vernon shouted as he tugged at the door.

"I'm so glad that you could join us you brute." Vernon heard a voice say, and suddenly the lights to the studio flipped on. The clownish freak was sitting in a chair, admiring one of his stupid paintings, "You were just the man I was looking for."

"What are you talking about?" Vernon asked, as he stomped over to the freak. He picked the freak up by the scruff of his clothing, "Where's my wife?"

"Ah, she's a bit stiff at the moment," The freak said, "But I'd like to show you the masterpiece I made."

Vernon blinked as the freak held up the painting of his wife. The painting seemed to be lifelike, and it perfectly captured Petunia's likeness.

"There's just something I need to add to freshen up my masterpiece," The freak smirked, and suddenly Vernon found himself floating in the air. He looked down to see that the freak had pulled out a scepter and was using it to keep him in the air.

"Y-you, you're a freak just like the boy!" Vernon shouted.

"What an astonishing observation," the freak said, "Truly it's a relief that there's only one of you walking on this earth."

"Hey I-"

"I tire of your whining," the freak said, "I suppose it would be much better if I turned you into something useful."

Suddenly, Vernon felt a sharp pain and all he could see was red, the laughter of the freak was the last thing he heard as his consciousness faded...

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"Here we are," Sheik said as the two of them reached the dungeon, "The pendant's in there, are you ready Harry?"

Harry nodded, and the two entered the Forbidden Forest's dungeon...


End file.
